Apr 17, 2016 | By Benedict
Spanish artist Sonia Verdu has created a 3D printed “dragon knocker”, an imitation iron door knocker shaped like the head of a dragon. The designer has shared her process and 3D printing files on Instructables.
Verdu, a multitalented Fine Arts graduate and graphic designer based in Spain, has popped up on the 3Ders radar several times. Last year, the artist released these cute 3D printed smartphone holders shaped like robots, after working on a much larger scale with these unusual, fully articulated life-size 3D printed dolls. The Spaniard even revealed her penchant for mythical reptile art with this 3D printed, 42-piece dragon back in June. Verdu has now returned to the timeless dragon theme with a Gothic-style 3D printed door knocker which makers can 3D print and assemble at home.
The impressive 3D printed piece, which wouldn’t look out of place on the set of Game of Thrones, can be made in eight (relatively) simple steps, with Verdu walking us through each stage on the knocker’s detailed Instructables page. The most exciting stage is, of course, the 3D printing of the high-quality model. The artist has uploaded all necessary 3D printing files to Thingiverse, where users can choose a model with or without supports. Verdu herself 3D printed the model on a BQ Witbox 2 3D printer, an open-source, Spanish-made machine with a build volume of 297 x 210 x 200 mm. The artist recommends printing at 0.2mm resolution with just 15% infill. Supports are not required, since Verdu has incorporated them into the 3D model.
The finish of Verdu’s own model is, naturally, of an extremely high quality, having benefited from the artist’s supreme brush skills. To achieve the realistic iron finish, Verdi used a small amount of Epoxy XTC-3D resin coating combined with iron powder, before oxidizing areas of the iron coating with ammonium chloride to provide certain areas with a natural rust appearance. The result is a lightweight plastic piece which looks like it weighs ten times as much as it really does. Four Thingiverse users have already attempted to recreate the impressive 3D printed model, with one opting to paint the dragon blue (below).
Sonia Verdu was born in Madrid, Spain, and studied Fine Arts at the University of Madrid for five years. She is now primarily engaged with digital painting and illustration work for book covers. Much of her work can be seen on her personal website.
Posted in 3D Printing Application
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